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Study aims to predict spring performance

An Institute Of Spring Technology product story
Edited by the Engineeringtalk editorial team Aug 11, 2003

The IST has recently been presented with a Smart award by the UK DTI for a feasibility study into predicting the nonaxial force characteristics of a spring based on end coil movement.

The IST has recently been presented with a Smart award by the UK DTI for a feasibility study into predicting the nonaxial force characteristics of a spring based on end coil movement.

Traditionally it has been believed that the line of force within a compression spring operates along the centre line of the spring.

With the development of a sophisticated testing machine by the IST it has been shown the line of force can take many forms depending upon the degree of compression of the spring.

Consequently in every spring application there are additional forces, to the major axial force, being exerted by the spring on the component to which it is fitted.

These forces comprise a shear force, a tilting moment and a twisting moment.

This work is aimed at providing a low-cost solution to the understanding and minimising of these nonaxial forces in springs.

As industry reduces the overengineering of products designers are increasingly encountering problems due to these forces which may be exhibited in the hysteresis of a system, additional wear and variability in performance.

National standards for springs do not cover nonaxial forces but do allow for the tolerancing of the squareness of springs in the free position and some designers will use this in the incorrect belief that the more square a spring is the lower the nonaxial forces.

However, recent work has shown that spring squareness in the free position does not relate to the level of nonaxial forces exhibited by the spring under load.

It is the squareness under load that is the most influential factor.

This project will investigate the feasibility of producing an attachment for standard load testers such that the spring ends can move during the test.

By allowing the force to move the spring ends and measure the movement using sensors, it will then be possible to utilise the axial spring rate, the compressed length and the lateral rate to calculate a predicted nonaxial performance.

In this way a jig can be placed upon a standard machine to determine nonaxial performance instead of using a specialist machine with multiple load cells.

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